Goals in each half from Mohamed Kuddous and Odsonne Edouard saw them share the spoils in a 1-1 draw between West Ham and Crystal Palace.
The two teams went into the game on opposite sides – West Ham had won their last four games in all competitions, including a Europa League win in midweek, while Crystal Palace had lost their last two in the Premier League.
Although the Eagles started on the better side on their short trip to east London, Kudus’s stunning 13th-minute goal put the hosts ahead. However, Palace goalkeeper Sam Johnstone could have done better when the ball went into his hands.
But Palace equalized the score with the first shot on the team’s goal. It was a terribly lax pass from Konstantinos Mavropanos that saw Edouard run towards goal and send into the far corner.
The result did not move any team up the table. West Ham remained in ninth place with 21 points. Crystal Palace remained in 12th place with 16 points, nine points away from the relegation places.
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How the points were shared at the London Stadium
West Ham United player Mohamed Kuddus celebrates with Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal after scoring the first goal
Crystal Palace started the game well, but found themselves behind early on. With his first shot, Kudus gave West Ham the lead. It was a wonderful ball from the back to Vladimir Koval on the right side.
He cut the ball back for the oncoming Kudos, who sent a powerful strike towards goal, deflecting into the path to whistle through Johnstone’s fingertips.
West Ham could have doubled their lead soon after. A wonderful long pass from Naif Aguiard broke Jarrod Bowen forward, but the Crystal Palace defense managed to return the ball safely to the goalkeeper.
The visitors’ best effort in the first half came 10 minutes before the end of the first half. Joachim Andersen sent a free kick into the area that hit the wall before turning wide of the far post.
West Ham thought they had doubled their lead immediately after half-time. Tomas Soucek latched on to Kudos’s lurching cross, which curled into the far corner. However, the flag was rightly raised and the goal was disallowed.
It didn’t take long for Palace to equalise. It was a listless moment from Mavropanos as Edouard received his poor pass. The striker then entered the penalty area and shot the ball into the far corner.
Odsonne Edouard scored the equalizer for Crystal Palace
Although the chances were slim for most of the match, West Ham came close to scoring twice in the second half.
A wonderful ball from Aguirard found Emerson running towards the back post. However, he could only throw the ball away with his outstretched foot. Then, in the fourth minute of six extra minutes, Pablo Fornals curled a wonderful shot into the middle, but Bowen’s header went straight to Johnstone.
Moyes: We didn’t play well enough
West Ham coach David Moyes to Sky Sports:
“I don’t know if we have that [the lead] Completely closed. We came out after halftime and wanted to get off to a better start. I don’t think we played well in the first half, but we scored a goal in front.
“A lot of times in the Premier League, there are close 1-0 games, and when that happens, you have to make sure you don’t give in, you hold on, you’re resilient and you’re strong.
“But we missed a really cheap goal that gave Crystal Palace the lead.
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“Maybe there was a bit of fun from the game in midweek. We didn’t play fast enough, we need a big atmosphere here on Sunday and it’s not always easy to achieve that at these times when the game starts, to help.” Players as well.
“But overall, we didn’t play well enough. We missed one or two chances in the first half, but it wasn’t too bad. But I just needed to play with more gravity, play a little further forward and get the ball in the goal.” We did that as the game went on and created more chances at the end.
“We strive to find ways to win. Recently, we have been winning games late. Today, we came close but not enough.
“Today, it is disappointing that we did not get a result because our form here was good.”
Hodgson: It’s important not to give up
Crystal Palace coach Roy Hodgson to Sky Sports:
“The game was very even. We had to survive the last five minutes and then extra time as they were putting the ball into the box a lot and that’s always a moment of worry and anxiety.
He added: “But I have to accept that those anxious moments are normal for us because the last two matches were different from what we wanted and we lost those matches because we are in a good position.”
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“Maybe that explains a little bit why it was important not to give up in the last 10 minutes and make sure we dealt with those balls. Fortunately, we did that… We showed at times that we have quality in the team.
“It takes me back to my time at Inter. We were winning games at the San Siro and winning them with dignity. Then suddenly, 2-0 became 2-1 with a late goal and then at the end. In the last 10 minutes, we lost all the football we played there to lead us.” To the forefront.
“I think that was a bit the case today and it would have been tough if we didn’t get something. The point is something we really deserved with the performance.
“The players now know what they can and should do. Hopefully what this result will do is make them forget that we had a bad result against Everton which hurt us badly, and it’s the same with Luton.
“In fact, the last 10 minutes of the game today were similar to what we did with Luton. We bombarded their penalty area with crosses, but they were good enough to deal with it just as we did today.”
Opta Statistics – Hodgson, Ward Milestones
- Both West Ham United and Crystal Palace have scored in each of their last 13 Premier League meetings, with only Fulham v Manchester City (15 between 2004-2011) having had a longer run in the competition.
- Only Burnley (14) and Bournemouth (13) have dropped more points from winning positions in the Premier League than West Ham this season (12), seven of which have come at the London Stadium.
- With Odsonne Edouard’s goal making it 1-1, Roy Hodgson became the first Crystal Palace manager to oversee 200 goals scored by the Eagles in the Premier League.
- Joel Ward today played his 291st match for Crystal Palace in the English Premier League, which is the most number of matches in which an Eagles player has participated in the competition alongside Wilfried Zaha.
Premier League Statistics – West Ham vs Crystal Palace
What then?
Travel to West Ham Tottenham On Thursday in the London derby, the match kicks off at 8.15pm. Then it’s a trip to Fulham On Sunday, start at 2 p.m.
Crystal Palace have back-to-back home games to look forward to, first against them Bournemouth On Wednesday, the match kicks off at 7.30pm, before hosting Liverpool Saturday, start at 12.30pm.
